It’s been a few months since Brisbane’s Golden Age of Ballooning released their last single by way of the liberating “Wilderness Soul”, but after plenty of waiting, the group have complemented it with one of the most impressive music videos you’ll see all year.
Originally released back in May of this year, “Wilderness Soul” followed on from the group’s 2020 single “Birthday”, which itself was their first new track in two years. “We do have to warn you, it does rock pretty hard,” the group quipped on Facebook upon its release. “For a melancholic song anyway.”
Little did fans know, but plans had been in place for the single to be accompanied by an equally-impressive music video. But as we’re all aware, time makes fools of us all, and with COVID-19-related lockdowns, restrictions, and other unfortunate happenings in the works, things were pushed back continuously, causing the clip to arrive far later than expected.
Premiering today, the seven-minute clip saw the Golden Age of Ballooning working with director Luis A. Bran to harken back to the classic days when music videos were effectively short films to accompany the music. Kicking off with frontman Wolfe Peterson turning up to practice, his dissatisfaction with the pointiness of his guitar results in a swift exit which in turn leads to a liberating run à la Tom Hanks’ famous scene in Forrest Gump.
As the sweeping, immersive track unfolds, so too does the gorgeous cinematography, which follows a journey that ultimately sees Peterson reigniting his love of music (featuring a Guns N’ Roses’ “November Rain”-inspired guitar solo from Jack Bratt), and eventually rejoining the band to finish their practice – complete with his Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. hat in tow.
Though six months in the making, the expansive video was undeniably more than worth it, with its stunning visuals and mesmerising audio pairing with the sort of humour and narrative that reminds us all of a time when video clips were more than choreography and fly-by-night memes. Take the time to sit with the video for “Wilderness Soul”, you won’t regret it.
The arrival of the video clip also coincides with the forthcoming appearance by the Golden Age of Ballooning at the Sunshine Coast’s Yonder Festival on Friday, November, 26th. Full details about the festival are available at the Yonder website.
